ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Steel Mill (PSM) has been declared as scrap, deeming it nearly impossible to revive the mill with its existing infrastructure and outdated technology. The decision was made during meetings of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) headed by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The Secretary of the Ministry of Industries & Production, while briefing the Standing Committee on Industries & Production, announced that the 19,000 acres of PSM land would be utilized for establishing a Special Economic Zone. He detailed that two Special Economic Zones of 500 and 700 acres of land were established, respectively.
Additionally, at the request of the Chief Minister of Sindh, the government allocated an extra 700 acres of land to the provincial government for the re-establishment of a state-of-the-art steel mill with modern technology and infrastructure.
The mill, which was established in 1974, has been facing financial difficulties for the past decade. The CFO of the mill claimed last month that the volume of PSM employees’ annual salary is Rs3.1 billion and in the last 10 years, the government has paid Rs 32 billion in salaries.
The Secretary also stated that the Ministry had approved the disconnection of the gas supply to Pakistan Steel Mills on June 30, 2024, to prevent an additional cost of approximately Rs. 2.5 billion to the national exchequer. At the request of the Federal Minister for Industries & Production, the Committee decided to hold a separate meeting for an in-depth briefing on Pakistan Steel Mill (PSM).
Standing committee on industries reviews performance of utility stores corporation
The second meeting of the Standing Committee on Industries & Production, chaired by Syed Hafeez ud Din, was held on Friday. The Secretary briefly apprised the Committee about the workings and performance of the Ministry and its attached departments.
The MD of Utility Store Corporation (USC) also briefed the Committee about the functions, performance, and problems faced by USC management. He stated USC has opened approximately 6,000 stores all over the country, out of which 4,775 are functional in all the provinces. In the last financial year, as per the Prime Minister’s relief package, Rs. 22.53 billion was allocated to USC, with Rs. 12.47 billion reserved for the Ramzan Relief Package. This year, around Rs. 60 billion was allocated for the provision of subsidized food items to beneficiaries, likely to be approved by the Federal Cabinet.
After listening to the USC briefing, the Committee concluded that this is a huge subject requiring in-depth review. Thus, the Committee decided to hold a separate meeting on the Utility Store Corporation to review all matters in detail. The Committee issued instructions to the MD of USC to submit all audit reports before the next meeting.
The Committee expressed concern over the taxes levied on the industry by the Federal Government and suggested that the Chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) should be called to brief the Committee about the taxes on the industry. They also sought government support to waive taxes on the industrial sector for its revival.
Besides the Federal Minister for Industries and Production, the following MNAs attended the meeting: Mr. Shahid Usman, Mr. Sajid Mehdi, Ms. Kiran Imran Dar, Dr. Mahesh Kumar Malani, Mr. Muhammad Saad Ullah, Mr. Rana Atif, Mr. Muhammad Arshad Sahi, and officials of the Ministry.
